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The soldiers who’ve died in Afghanistan

Wars are often reduced to their numbers—the amount spent, the casualties both military and civilian.

But it’s hard to visualize those numbers. After they climb high enough, my brain reverts to the vague idea of “many” or “a lot.”

When I got the list of troops who’ve died from the Department of Defense, I spent a good while looking at the names. “A lot” became concrete.

In remembrance of 10 years in Afghanistan, we published the names, ages and home states of all U.S. casualties reported before Oct. 3. It’s interesting to note how the lists for each year grow exponentially.